Metal |
Sources |
Description |
Aluminum |
Antacids, antiperspirants, baking
powders, beverage/food cans, buffered aspirin, canned foods, city water supplies, cookware
and utensils, cosmetics, foil, lipstick, ore smelting plants, processed cheeses, etc. |
Abundant in today's environment
and toxic in excessive quantities, aluminum is mostly absorbed through the skin, lungs,
and intestinal tract. Aluminum toxicity seems to affect the bones (causing brittleness or
osteoporosis), kidneys, stomach, and brain. Research suggests that it may also contribute
to Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and other neurological
disorders. |
Arsenic |
Chemical processing plants,
cigarette smoke, drinking water, fungicides, meats and seafood, metal foundries, ore
smelting plants, pesticides, polluted air, specialty glass products, weed killers, wood
preservatives, etc. |
Extremely poisonous as well as
colorless and odorless, arsenic can enter the body through the mouth, lungs and skin.
Arsenic toxicity seems to predominantly affect the skin, lungs and gastrointestinal
system, and may cause nervous disorders, deteriorated motor coordination, respiratory
diseases, and kidney damage as well as cancers of the skin, liver, bladder and lungs. |
Cadmium |
Air pollution, batteries, ceramic
glazes/enamels, cigarette smoke (both first and second hand), tap and well water, food (if
grown in cadmium-contaminated soil), fungicides, mines, paints, power and smelting plants,
seafood, etc. |
Exposure to cadmium can occur
through inhalation or ingestion in places or situations where cadmium products are used,
manufactured, or ingested. Cigarette smoke is the biggest source of cadmium toxicity,
which seems to primarily affect the lungs, kidneys, bones, and immune system. It may lead
to lung cancer, prostate cancer and heart disease, and also causes yellow teeth and
anemia. Cadmium also seems to contribute to autoimmune thyroid disease. |
Lead |
Air pollution, ammunition, auto
exhaust, batteries, containers for corrosives, contaminated soil, cosmetics, fertilizers,
foods (if grown in lead-contaminated soil), hair dyes, insecticides, lead-based paints,
lead-glazed pottery, pesticides, solder, tobacco smoke, water (if transported via lead
pipes), etc. |
Lead is a naturally-occurring
neurotoxin. Although many lead-containing products (such as gasoline and house paints)
were banned in the 1970s, contamination still occurs today mostly by drinking
lead-contaminated water, breathing lead-polluted air, and living in or near older painted
buildings and certain toxic industrial areas. Lead toxicity primarily targets the nervous
system, kidneys, bones, heart and blood, and poses greatest risk to infants, young
children and pregnant women. It can affect fetal development, delay growth, and may also
cause attention deficit disorder, learning disabilities, behavioral defects, and other
developmental problems. |
Mercury |
Air pollution, barometers,
batteries, cosmetics, dental amalgam fillings, freshwater fish (such as tuns, bass and trout),
fungicides, insecticides, laxatives, paints, pesticides, saltwater fish (such as tuna and
swordfish), shellfish, tap and well water, thermometers, thermostats, vaccines, etc. |
Both poisonous and dangerous,
mercury is found throughout our environments in many forms and also in many household
items. Mercury often permeates the ground we walk on, and is also found in some childhood
vaccines today because of its use as a preservative. Mercury as used in dental fillings is
the primary source of toxic exposure, and in vapor form accounts for the majority of all
exposures (via inhalation). Mercury toxicity can affect the central nervous system,
kidneys and liver. Research suggests that this heavy metal may also contribute to autism
and multiple sclerosis. |
Thallium |
Infrared and electric eye optical
devices, foods (if grown in thallium-contaminated soil), light-sensitive crystals,
photocells, rodent and ant poisons (now discontinued), contaminated cocaine (or what is
thought to be cocaine), semiconductors, etc. |
Thallium is a toxic heavy metal
with no known biological function. Human contamination can occur from oral ingestion as
well as through the skins and lungs, especially if exposed to thallium-contaminated dust
from lead and zinc smelting plants, pyrite burners, and similar processing sites. Thallium
toxicity mainly affects the nervous system, and can lead to maladies such as hair loss,
nerve degeneration, extremity numbness, and cataracts. |